Akuma to Dolce
by Karitsuki
Summary: Risuka's has a secret... he can summon devils. Risuka accidenly summons the high-level devil, Soubi. Can Soubi help Risuka find his brother, Seimei? RitsukaxSoubi
1. Contract

**Hello minna-san! This is my first fanfiction ever, so please take it easy on me. ****As well as this being my first fanfiction, this is also my first time using Microsoft Word 2007. xD ****I'm used to the old 1997 version… so just bear with me. Now… to introduce the fanfiction: ****I got the idea from the manga, Akuma to Dolce, though I'll be changing it up a bit. But I needed to add that credit in there. w ****Also, I'm going to try my best to stay in character. Btw, Ritsuka is a bit different from the anime/manga because his brother didn't "die" in here.**

_**Disclaimer: Yun Kouga owns Loveless**_

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'_Ne… Seimei? How long has it been since I last saw you…?_'

The maple leaves from outside the school windows blew gently in the autumn breeze.

'_You know, I'm getting better! I baked a strawberry tart the other day…_'

"…gi-kun."

He could have sworn he heard something fade into his daydreaming.

'_Your recipes are really efficient! Though, I'm nowhere as good as baking them as you are…_'

"…yagi-kun…!"

…There it was again!

"AOYAGI RISUKA!"

With that he snapped awake, staring into the frustrated eyes of his childish sensei. He could hear soft murmurs and giggles around him, and feel his classmate's merciless stares boring holes through his him. As embarrassment crept into his face, he managed to stutter a reply, "H-Hai?"

"Mo, Aoyagi-kun! Please answer the problem on the board!" Ritsuka caught the small sigh that escaped her mouth as she returned to the front of the room.

"4/5ths…" he answered after doing the math in his head.

"Correct! Now..." The sensei continued the problem, showing the class how Ritsuka solved it.

"Ritsuka-kun!"

Ritsuka redirected his attention toward the source of the urgent whisper. Hawatari Yuiko, the pink-haired girl next to him had an innocent and worried look on her face.

"Are you—"

"I'm fine." He cut her off abruptly, the faintest trace of a pout on his face. He turned around, facing the windows again. He propped his right hand up and rested his cheek in its palm. He exhaled softly and allowed himself to slip back into his trace-like state.

'_Seimei… where are you?_'

--

"I summon thee from your residing to do my bidding, Kuru-chan!"

The summoning circle glowed in the dim-lit room and soon after a puff of smoke filled the area. "Kuu!" a small voice chimed behind the fog that was now, very easy to see through. A very small figure flapped its way over to Ritsuka.

The little devil, who seemed to be no bigger than four inches, had it all – bat-wings, sharp teeth, pointed ears, tail, and cuteness one could die over. Ritsuka smiled, his silky black tail twitching slightly under his equally obsidian summoning cloak.

"Kuru-chan, I need you to get me three pounds of flour. It's about time to re-stock." He explained happily, reaching for the reward in his pocket.

The devil sniffed the air, licking his lips impatiently while he eagerly awaited his payment. And there it was – the candy.

Ritsuka carefully placed the hard candy in the devil's miniature hands. A small giggle came out of his parted lips as he watched the devil receive it more than willingly. For crying out loud – the candy was the size of Kuru's head, if not bigger!

With that, the devil started its leave, more than determined to come back with the requested flour at hand.

Ritsuka watched it as it flew off, through the open window. He waited a minute before retreating to the kitchen.

'_Seimei, you taught me this family-secret… How to summon devils._'

Ritsuka filled the tea pot with water and placed it on the stove, setting the heat on medium-high.

'_You told me, the easiest way to win a devil's loyalty… his heart, was to bribe him with sweets._'

He placed tea leaves in the water, watching as they slowly sank to the bottom.

'_That's why you left me your recipe book, ne?_'

The pot began steaming, and he turned the heat off. He reached for one of the tea-cups in the cupboard next to the stove, bringing it down and setting it on the table. He let out a soft yawn, lately all he's been doing is daydreaming…

'_Ever since you left it's been so boring… mom's been in the hospital and dads off who-knows-where as usual…_'

He poured the strong-scented tea into the cup and set it down on the nearby kitchen table. After shrugging out of his cloak and dropping it over one of the chairs, he then proceeded to plop his tiny but square in the middle of it.

'_The only thing you never told me… was why I wasn't allowed to make contracts with devils._'

He ran his hand over the bulging recipe book and opened it at one of the tabs he marked that read, "Pumpkin Pie". He skimmed over the ingredients quickly before flipping to the next page.

'_I know you made a contract before… but why can't I? All you told me was, "It's too dangerous."_'

Ritsuka pouted and glanced over toward the strawberry tart he baked the other day. It was still relatively fresh. He was considering giving it to Yuiko, strawberry is her favorite and he remembered her telling him her family liked it too.

'_I shouldn't complain… all I can summon is Kuru-chan.'_

He reached for his tea cup and brought the still-steaming liquid to his face. The steam felt nice on his face. He took a small sip, quickly pulling the cup away in shock. He expected it to be hot but not that hot! Huh? The ceiling? Wait… what?! BAM!

In that moment, despite his back being slammed against the floor, and boiling liquid burning his skin, the only thing he thought about was his school uniform.

The tea had soaked through his used-to-be-white shirt and this was the only uniform he had. He regretted being forced to attend a school that required uniforms.

Ritsuka shot up, the tea cup falling off his chest and the chair beneath his back wobbling as he made his way up-straight. He forgot his cloak and darted into the summoning room.

"I summon thee from your residing to do my bidding! I don't care who you are! Just come!" he shouted in a rush, frantically waving his hands around as if that was going to make the summoning any faster.

With that, a large exploding sound erupted toward the middle of the room and smoke poured out from the center of the summoning circle.

Ritsuka couldn't help but cough and become teary eyed. He lifted his head and squinted, trying his best to see through the thick smoke.

Slowly, he began to make out a figure, it was tall and lithe despite the intricate and royal-looking attire he wore. His heart skipped a beat as his eyes made their way up to the person's face. It was strange to admit, but the person was beautiful –

He had feathery ash-blond hair down, past his shoulders. His face was breath-taking, accompanied by what Ritsuka was caught most off-guard by, stunning hazel eyes. He didn't think it was possible, by somehow they managed to look menacing and kind at the same time.

The man stared back at Ritsuka, an amused expression slowly creeping its way to the corners of his lips. He pushed his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose with his ring finger.

Ritsuka instinctively backed away from the man, his raven-black feline ears pressing lightly against his head.

The man seemed to notice the boy's discomfort and placed a kinder, gentler expression on his face. "My name is Agatsuma Soubi, you summoned?"

Ritsuka's ears perked back up as he heard the man's soft and genial voice. It was nice to listen to. A light blush graced his cheeks as he glanced away, still uncomfortable. "A-Aoyagi Ritsuka… can you please… take the stain… out of my uniform…?"

Soubi looked surprised for a moment, chuckled lightly, and then placed the amused expression on his face again.

Ritsuka glanced back up at the older man who seemed to have somehow glided to where Ritsuka was standing within a matter of seconds. "…Stain?" the man repeated, almost clarifying. He bent over so that his face was eye-level with Ritsuka, their faces only inches away. Soubi's breath was sweet on Ritsuka's face.

Ritsuka nodded slowly, feeling the blush deepen on his cheeks. He watched speculating, as the man's expression changed from amused to almost hurt. He could have sworn he heard the man mutter something like, "A stain of all things?"

The man quickly retreated, looking down on the cute feline boy with gentle eyes. "Certainly."

Ritsuka sighed in relief, trying his best to avoid eye-contact.

"But—" The man continued. "You need to make a contract with me."

Ritsuka looked up, startled by the man's request and all too quickly, it happened.

"Let me be yours, Ritsuka."

The taller man leaned in, reclosing the distance between them and before Ritsuka could flee, the man's lips were on his. Ritsuka froze in shock before his brain registered what he wanted to do. He pushed the man off of him with full force, his face flushed from anger or embarrassment, or both.

"Agatsuma-san!!" he yelled, angrily, his ears flat against his head.

"Soubi." He corrected, putting a finger up against Ritsuka's soft lips. "Just Soubi is fine." He smiled.

Ritsuka pulled to the side, rejecting the finger. "S-Soubi…" the name had a nice feeling as it rolled off his tongue.

"Oh! Is that strawberry tart I smell?" he chimed, delighted, nonchalantly following the smell to its source.

Ritsuka stared forward, allowing himself to relax against the wall.

"Ah! S-Soubi! My uniform!" he scurried after the strange man.

'_Seimei… I think I'm starting to understand why you said… contracts are "too dangerous"..._'

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**First chapter complete! ****Reviews will be loved! ****I'm planning on continuing this, so expect more!**


	2. Bonds

**Thank you for the reviews! Every one of them makes me happy. Feed back is very important to me and it's very inspiring and fun to incorporate others' ideas. I have no life, so it's hard for me to find time to write. Basically more reviewsfaster update. Either way, thanks for the support!**

_**Disclaimer: Yun Kouga owns Loveless**_

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"I summon thee from your residing to do my bidding, Soubi!"

A puff of smoke filled the room. It was getting thinner every time Ritsuka summoned Soubi. It has been almost two weeks since Ritsuka first summoned him, the Prince of Hell, and although they saw each other almost every day, it still felt like Ritsuka knew nothing about this mysterious devil at all.

As the smoke cleared and Ritsuka snapped out of his thinking he noticed, Soubi was nowhere to be found. '_I did summon him right…?_' He looked around, praying for signs that he wasn't going delusional.

"Ritsuka, what did you bake me today?"

Ritsuka's heart fluttered quickly before the calming sense of relief gained dominance over his emotions. He followed the voice, eager to see whom it belonged to. As he nearly ran out of the summoning room, he found the man, sitting contently at the kitchen table with an amused look on his flawless face. Despite the happiness of seeing this man, he had to silently scowl to himself, '_Are all devils born that beautiful?_'

Soubi watched the adorable boy as he practically sprinted into the room. "Ritsuka?" he questioned after watching his expression change from delighted to almost an almost remorseful look.

Ritsuka shook his head slowly, choosing to only solely focus on Soubi for the time being. He walked across the room to the stove and opened it, letting the smell of fresh-baked pastry fill the air. It was a very sweet and warm aroma. Soubi smiled instinctively, wondering what Ritsuka's wish could be that would drive him to pay with something just out of the oven -- literally.

Soubi did leave Ritsuka with another alternative…

"_Ritsuka…" Despite the warmth of Soubi's breath, it sent a chill down Ritsuka's spine._

"_S-Soubi!" the boy stuttered, "Don't creep up on me like that!" a deep blush blossomed on his cheeks. The shock had caused him to lose his page in the book he was vigorously studying just moments before._

_He chuckled lightly at the boy's innocent reaction and proceeded to stare at him affectionately while he spoke, "You know, you don't have to pay me with sweets... I'm happy just to help you."_

_Ritsuka looked up at the man who hovered above him with a skeptical look. His face clearly read something along the lines of, 'Some Saint you are.' He pursed his lips and attempted to explain, "It just wouldn't feel right if I got everything for free."_

_Soubi's smile returned to his lips in response to Ritsuka's statement. "Then… you can pay me otherwise…"_

_Ritsuka's slender eyebrow rose in suspicion, just what was Soubi getting at? After finally finding the page he was on he placed the bookmark in the correct area, and turned around to see Soubi eye to eye. "What?"_

_The blonde's hair fell lightly, framing Soubi's face and gentle smile. His amused expression crept back onto his face as he answered, "Kiss me."_

_There was a small moment of silence before Ritsuka flatly refused, having turned around to "read his book" in a failed attempt to hide his expression. The blush must have doubled, at the very least and he couldn't help but look flustered as memories from his first encounter with Soubi bubbled back to the surface of his mind._

_Soubi expected this answer, so it wasn't very hard to accept the rejection. He knew Ritsuka was sensitive on that topic and seeing the boy flustered was too adorable to pass up._

"Almond-fudge brownies!" he announced, an almost proud look on his face as he proceeded, with hand muffs, to take the steaming stray out of the oven.

Soubi rejoiced while making sure his blasé charade was fully intact. He eyed Ritsuka protectively as the boy neared the table, brownies at hand, placed them on the cooling stray and sat down himself. He let out a sigh, '_All in one piece._' Although Ritsuka wasn't one to be clumsy, he did have his moments, many of them being near Soubi. This made the blond strangely tense and concerned when Ritsuka did anything that could end up in an accident.

The boy did live alone, which didn't help Soubi's concern any bit. The boy's past was very secluded… more like, he never talked about himself, so Soubi knew barely anything about him.

Ritsuka waved a hand in front of Soubi in an attempt to bring him back from… wherever he was. He blinked and Ritsuka greeted him with a smile. "Soubi… you do like almond brownies, ne?"

Soubi rested his head in his hand, his elbow on the table and stared back at Ritsuka. "I like anything you bake, Ritsuka."

The boy's ebony tail twitched and a pink blush made its way onto his porcelain face once more. He should be used to Soubi by now, he always flirted. But somehow, even if they were tiny comments like this, he still enjoyed hearing them.

The brownies were decently warm now and Ritsuka proceeded to cut Soubi a piece. The man reached out to grab the plate from him and their hands brushed. Ritsuka instinctively backed away, the plate already in the blond's possession.

Soubi had an almost hurt and somewhat worried expression as he watched the boy's reaction. Nonetheless, he took the fork which had been previously placed on the table and began to eat away at the sweet. He swallowed, "Your wish?"

Ritsuka frowned; did he have to want something from this man? Couldn't wanting to see him be enough? "I want you to help me find something…" He started, cutting a piece of brownie for himself to nibble on.

Soubi's perked up and an eyebrow rose in curiosity. "Couldn't you just wish for a new one? That would save you ti—"

"No!" Ritsuka spat, his voice filled with a mixture of anger and frustration. "I want you to help me find…"

Soubi was surprised by the boy's reaction, could this thing he wanted to find be so important that it couldn't be replaced? He watched the shota boy closely; his ears were flat against his head, tail still twitching slightly. He seemed overall hesitant. The man waited, curiosity brimming.

"… My brother."

The room was engulfed in silence. Soubi placed his plate on the table, remnants of brownie shaking. He moved to push his glasses up the bridge of his nose with his ring finger. Ritsuka looked up, his dark violet eyes searching for an answer on the devil's face, but he saw nothing. Nothing, until the man looked up at him with a gentle, yet… grim? Smile on his lips.

"Certainly." Ritsuka absorbed the words, letting them marinate for a while before reacting. His obsidian ears perked up and a bright smile flashed across his face. "Thank you, Soubi! Thank you!" He flung out of his chair and pulled Soubi into a tight embrace. Despite the man sitting down, he was still tall on the chair. The blond rubbed soothing circles on Ritsuka's back; it was so small underneath Soubi's hand – so fragile.

"But Ritsuka, a wish like that… requires time… and greater payment." He spoke softly into the boy's ear and almost instantly, the boy pulled away to stare into the blond's hazel eyes.

"What?"

Soubi was hesitant and shifted slightly in the chair. "Do you know anything about contracting with devils?" He watched the small boy as he blinked and shook his head from side to side. So cute—

"Well…" he began, watching as Ritsuka made his way back to his seat. "A contract is a bond between Summoner and Devil. The stronger the bond… the stronger the two become. A very long time ago, summoners summoned devil's to test strength, and to control power. The system became corrupt, like most things with power do. The act of fighting with a devil was banned and that is why summoning today goes as far as simple payment and wishes. However, there are still holes in the banning. When the devil needs to put real effort into a wish and requires the help of his summoner, a greater payment is required… one that would strengthen their bond."

Ritsuka stared at the man intently, soaking in the information, trying to comprehend the best he could. '_Summoners and Devils would fight each other for power… it was banned… and now summoners can only ask for wishes? Makes sense… but… a greater payment? Other than sweets?_'

Soubi could read the curious expression on Ritsuka's face and answered his question nonchalantly, "Kiss me."

Ritsuka stared for a moment at the man, '_A contract is a bond… I have a contract with Soubi… the greater the bond… the stronger the team… payment… a kiss…? Does that mean the bond is…_' Ritsuka's face flushed the brightest crimson, so much that it made him a bit light headed. '_… sexual?!_'

"SOUBI! Get out!" he yelled, pulling the man by his sleeve. He complied, standing and allowed the small boy to push him into the summoning room and have the door slammed on him. "I don't want to see you again!" Ritsuka yelled, frustration coating his voice. The devil wasn't surprised, this reaction was expected.

"Stupid Soubi…" Ritsuka muttered to himself, leaning against the closed door, staring at the floor dully.

**Later that night… **

Petite hands held a paper full of ingredients the boy hand to buy in front of his dark eyes in an attempt to think of something else. As he walked the streets of the busy city, he grumbled to himself, his brows seemingly permanently furrowed. The feline boy was lost in thought, if a bystander were to look at him now, it would either a. seem like he was trying to win a staring contest with a piece of paper or b. having a mid-life crises. Both of those choices were wrong of course. The answer was actually c. having a fight with a devil about their relationship.

A small sigh escaped the boy's lips as he dropped his arm, paper in hand to look up at the bright lights around him that filled the night sky above. The streets were a bit more crowded today. The moving bodies around him helped shelter him from the late-autumn wind. It was chilly, especially tonight. The boy scowled under his breath, all he had on was a scarf and a thin sweat shirt that didn't do much to protect him against the wind.

However, he pushed his way through the ocean of people, to find himself next to a building that cut back into a very dim-lighted alley-way. Something about it looked more than eerie and despite his get telling him to move, he rejected its request, proceeding to tie his undone shoelace.

And just as his gut told him he was wrong to do so, he blinked to find himself being pulled violently into the alleyway by a set of two hands. He kicked, finding it useless, the paper of ingredients in his hand, crumpled. The two people pushed him against the brick wall in the back of the alley, releasing the hold they had on his mouth.

He sucked the air in greedily as they let go, ignoring his achy back. The small boy glared needles through the darkness, desperately looking for the cause of his pain. It was so dark – he only vaguely saw the two figures. They were small, about the same height as him. His eyes slowly began to adjust to the dim lighting and he was almost surprised as he saw his perpetrators in detail. They looked the same age as Ritsuka, one had a strange yet effortlessly straight foam-green hair while the others' was a more wild and curly maroon. He wore an eye-patch and seemed more docile than the one with the green hair. They were both smiling mischievously until the one with green hair spoke to the other.

"Ehh??" he whined, blatantly disappointed, "So this is the reason Nagisa-sensei's been jealous of that jerk?! The hell? He's just a whimp!" he pointed a finger at Ritsuka. The boy's ebony tail twitched, irritated, '_What the hell are they talking about?_' It was rare for Ritsuka to curse, but did these to really have a right to just drag him into a dark secluded alleyway and then argue about him?!

"Hmm… he does look quite pathetic." The one with Maroon hair agreed, his voice smirked. "She told us to check him out, but it seems there's nothing to see." He giggled slightly.

"Heh," the other choked out, "We should just get rid of him, then we won't have to listen to her complaints." The one with Maroon hair giggled again in agreement. With that, the one with green hair took something out from behind him with seemed to be a long and slender… bar of some sort.

Ritsuka's breath stopped as he inspected the item closer. It was a bat. And he was pretty sure they weren't planning on going home without using it… on him. The green-haired boy's arm cranked back, and Ritsuka flinched, awaiting the connection between the bat and himself. His eyes squeezed tight and his muscles tensed in instinctively in hopes of lessening the pain of impact.

'_Soubi!_'

The face of the man he had just yelled at flashed in his mind. Why did he have to die in such a pathetic way? Why couldn't he have been nicer to Soubi, the only one who ever kept him company? And then he heard it -- the air move around the object at incredible speed as the bat's momentum flew forward and then he heard the disgusting crunching sound of a hit.

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**Wow... I'm smart. Dx I just found out how to edit my documents. -.- I'm such a newb. Anyway, I want to update this soon! (it's so darn troublesome to find the time and inspiration) Either way, I hope you liked this chapter! Review if you have any comments, suggestions, etc. It would make me really happy! w**


	3. Agreement

_**Disclaimer: Loveless belongs to Yun Kouga**_

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'_Seimei… you used to tell me that life was a cruel game..._'

'_Who made it? Why? You still have yet to answer my questions… And despite not having those answers, I think I might believe you.'_

'_But there is one thing stopping me from believing…_'

The obsidian-haired boy opened his eyes reluctantly. He was just hit, right? Why didn't he feel any pain then? Was he in so much pain that he couldn't feel himself anymore? Was this… death?

His eyes searched through the darkness and it all came together when he saw the figure in front of him.

"Tsk… Damnit!" he heard the aqua-haired boy's voice mutter, accompanied by the maroons' discontented growl.

"I'm sorry… Ritsuka…"

Why would he…?

"I know you don't want to see me…"

The neko-boy shook his head slowly as he began to comprehend more of the confusion.

"But… I would never forgive myself… if I let anything happen to you!"

The man yelled angrily, his large back shaking unevenly as if the thought sent cold shivers through his entire being.

Ritsuka searched for his mouth, trying to form words. He finally found it, and was only able to whisper a, "How…?"

There was a silence. Nothing else seemed to matter in that moment. There Ritsuka was, helplessly staring at this man's back. This man, who was bleeding for his sake… Reality came back with his soothing voice.

"You called my name."

That sentence seemed to have more than the world's meaning in it. It was so simple… and yet…

The boy lifted a hand to dab at the corners of his eyes. He looked down at the dark where he knew his hand was and stared at it in awe.

He didn't need to see it… he could feel it. He could feel the moist of his tears continuing to brim at his eyes, overflowing and silently falling down his cheeks.

"Soubi… you…!" Ritsuka found his mouth and with full force used it—

"Shh…" he was hushed, "Let me take care of this first…"

The man's words were absolute. All the small boy could do was nod and obey them.

As if it was possible, Soubi strengthened his protective stance in front of Ritsuka, shielding him from the perpetrators.

The boys looked at the man in almost disgust. "This must be him…" the maroon-haired boy whispered to the other. The green-haired boy nodded in agreement, eyeing the man with anger.

Soubi cocked his head to the side, an expression of amusement and anger twisted on his lips. He strengthened his grip on the bat he caught in his left hand.

The other end had already been released by the green-haired boy already. His blood trickled down the bat slowly. The impact was strong, but not strong enough to take him out.

"Soubi-san, ne?" the green-haired boy smirked, "I still don't see what Nagisa-sensei is jealous about…" he complained with a tint of mischief in his voice.

"Youji!" the maroon-haired boy protested urgently under his breath, "Let's leave and report to her… who knows what she'll do to yo—us" he corrected, " if you do something to him…" a pained and almost guilty expression flashed across his face.

Youji looked at the other taking in his words with consideration, "Natsuo…" he sighed and looked at Soubi, glaring daggers through him. "Hmph… fine." He grinned in triumph, "At least we know one thing…"

Natsuo entwined his fingers with Youji and looked at Soubi with him, "Aoyagi Ritsuka is no threat." They finished the sentence together.

Ritsuka wasn't sure what had happened, for 1. Soubi was blocking his view and 2. Too many things were on his mind for him to really care what had happened.

All he knew was the boys somehow magically vanished only leaving traces of their mischievous laughter behind which too, soon vanished afterward.

He then watched as the man turned around to face him, the bat dropping to the floor as the blond released his grip. Soubi's face was soft and warm, carefully composed.

The ebony-haired boy hadn't stopped crying and as he saw the full impact of what those two, Natsuo and Youji had done, the tears only increased and he could feel himself bursting out into a sob.

Ritsuka knew he did this to Soubi – if he hadn't been so careless; so weak, Soubi wouldn't have gotten hurt.

Despite the tears blurring his vision, he could clearly see that Soubi's left arm was limp next to his body.

Blood from the impact dropped onto the cement ground. It had already accumulated into a decent-sized puddle. Hell, for all Ritsuka knew Soubi could have been shot!

"Ritsuka!" the blond ignored the throbbing pain in his left limb and kneeled down to comfort the smaller boy. His brows furrowed in anxiety.

Earlier, he had been told that he was not to be seen by Ritsuka. And yet, he disobeyed the boy's request.

Ritsuka watched as Soubi brought his good arm up to touch the boy and then, as if remembering something, pulled away.

The violet-eyed boy's heart clenched. '_No…_' He wanted that contact – to feel Soubi's skin on his. He reached out and desperately grabbed Soubi's retreating hand and pulled it closer to him.

"…Don't… leave me… ever… again…!" he choked out between sobs, hugging the hand closer.

And in one swift moment, the man was closer, tugging Ritsuka into a tight embrace against his chest.

As if he were a child, his tears soothed down into nothingness, content by the warmth he received by the contact.

"Certainly."

Ritsuka couldn't tell what the emotion in Soubi's voice was as he said that one word of promise. It made him a little uneasy but that was soon drowned away as he allowed a lull over come him.

He protested the best he could; he didn't want the safe feeling he had now to fade yet.

But, the overwhelming tug at his eye-lids and exhaustion from crying and trauma took control, only leaving him with the sweet aroma of Soubi.

**--**

Ritsuka slowly opened his eyes, blinking incoherently as light hit them. He groaned, rolling over on his bed. His surroundings were foggy and it took a while before his eyes adjusted to being awake.

Despite how groggy he felt, he sat up to look around the room. It was his room… and he was sleeping in his bed.

The last thing he remembered was Soubi… SOUBI!

The obsidian-haired boy jumped out of bed, not knowing what exactly he was planning on doing.

What time was it? How long had he been sleeping? Where was Soubi? Was he alright?

His back ached from laying in bed so long, his head darted to his electronic clock to read the time.

His eyes locked on the time in neon-green lighting,"3:47?!" he shouted to himself, disbelief gagging his voice.

He darted out of the room, not caring much how he somehow got into his pajamas. All he cared about was Soubi. That injury last night!

The boy had been so shaken last night that he ended up ignoring the blond's injury.

He was so selfish; he blushed, abashed by his previous actions and continued the search through his house.

He tripped, pulling him back from his thoughts. He could see the walls being pulled up when in reality gravity was the one tugging on his small form. He winced, preparing for the impact with the floor when suddenly he felt himself stopped.

Ritsuka reopened his eyes, staring at the floor and immediately stretched his neck up to have his heart stutter violently with both ease and embarrassment. Again, Soubi had saved him from his own foolishness.

"Soubi! Your arm!"

The ash-blond looked down at his inquired arm and smiled warmly back at the boy.

"…Is fine." He set Ritsuka down on his feet.

"But –!"

"Devil's heal a lot faster than human's Ritsuka."

The boy looked into the devil's eyes sadly, allowing the explanation. There was so much he didn't know about Soubi…

"I… want to know more about you… Soubi." Ritsuka looked down at his feet, red blooming on his feet.

Soubi let the statement linger in the air before replying. He watched as the boy hid his expression. This was the side of Ritsuka Soubi loved so much.

"Is that a wish?"

Ritsuka's head jerked up, an expression of pain and anger mixed on his face. "No!"

"… Very well. I will tell you anything."

Ritsuka's smile returned and his ebony tail twitched in contentment.

He didn't want to admit it… but Ritsuka needed this man. Not just to fulfill wishes… no, that's not what Ritsuka wanted.

The boy's stomach grumbled, ruining the mood. He pouted, but gave in to the sign of hunger.

Soubi chuckled lightly and followed after the violet-eyed boy as he made his way to the kitchen. He watched the small back with a protective, loving expression he wouldn't care display openly to the boy.

"Oh yeah." The tiny voice called out, preparing some cereal. "I agree." He said nonchalantly.

Soubi's eyebrow rose in curiosity. "To…?"

Ritsuka turned around slightly, revealing his flushed face. His ears pulled back and his tail twitched slightly as he allowed the words to roll of his tongue.

"To increase the strength of our contract… our "bond"."

Soubi's eyes widened in astonishment.

"But!" the boy set his conditions, "Only as the search ensues. The closer we get to finding him… the stronger our bond will be…" he turned around to finish preparing his meal.

The blond's amused smile flitted onto his face, "Naturally." He agreed.

From now on, it seemed things are only going to become more interesting…

'_But there is one thing stopping me from believing…_'

'_And that… is Soubi._'

* * *

**Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews! I'm also really sorry about my poor grammar. ****It's just that the spell-check sometimes automatically changes some of the words into others. ****And on top of that, I don't review what I write. I tried to edit it afterwards, but it wouldn't let me… ****So, I hope you can see past those faults and still enjoy my writing!**


	4. Family

**I probably went out of character in this chapter, so be forewarned.**

_**Loveless belongs to Yun Kouga**_

* * *

_Ding-dong-ding-dong… ding-dong-ding-dong…_

A sigh made its way through Ritsuka's lips, another day of school. It seemed like forever since he had last gone.

And there it was—the annoying buzzing of a particular girl that ensured that he was indeed, back.

"Hey Yuiko…" he replied, closing in the door of his shoe locker with a soft 'thud'.

This girl seemed to be absolutely obsessed with Ritsuka. And, he had no idea what could compel her obsession in her right mind... assuming she had one, of course.

The black-haired boy shifted the bag on his right side further up his shoulder as it began to slide down.

The girl beside him simply beamed with excitement—from what, he may never know. Not that he would want to anyway.

He had moved to this school about a year before he had met Soubi, and yet, he had made such great nuisances. Dare he call them friends?

Another sigh was heaved as he opened the sliding doors to homeroom, more familiar faces turned to glance and then quickly turn away to continue their conversations before class started.

"Ne! Ne! Ritsuka!" the tall girl ambushed him as soon as he placed his bag down, next to his seat.

_Why, Dear God? Why did my seat have to be next to her… of all people?!_

Ritsuka turned to face the pink-head with a quizzical and annoyed expression.

"What, Yuiko?"

The girl's face turned pink, but the boy didn't notice and became more annoyed as she stalled. Why was it that he had no patience when it came to her?

"It's about time, right?"

Ritsuka cocked his head to the side, his obsidian tail twitching as he wracked his brain for what the hell she could be talking about.

"For…?" he pressed on, turning to sit in his seat; pulling out a novel he had been reading recently.

There was a small silence from the girl next to him, who also decided to have a seat. This caused Ritsuka to look at her, astounded that she even had the ability to not annoy him for at least ten seconds. And he was yet again more than surprised to see her ears back, blushing, looking down – all of it, embarrassed.

"…What?" he asked again, concerned for her mental health. She wasn't acting like her stupid, naïve self that irritated him ever since he had met her.

"To visit your mom." She replied quickly. Perhaps in hopes that the quicker the assault, the lesser impact it would have?

Ritsuka flinched at the word "mom". How long has it been since he had last gone to visit her? That mother of his…? A month at least…

He grimaced, why did she have to be so considerate of his feelings? Why couldn't she be completely stupid all of the time?

"… Yeah…" he replied, staring at the letters in the book, which he assumed created words. The discussion fell and an eerie silence loomed over the two until Yuiko snapped back to her usual self.

"So! We went strawberry picking again yesterday! My mom said instead of jam, we were going to make strawberry lemonade this time!" she announced cheerily. "Would you like me to bring some for you tomorrow?"

Ritsuka shrugged indifferently, "Sure."

"Wai!" she clapped her hands together, a pink blush emphasizing her happiness. "I'll be sure to make it with extra love! Especially if it's for Ritsuka…."

The girl's voice began to fade as Ritsuka's attention began to focus on the letters of the book, which did in fact make words, which did make a story, which he attempted to read in hopes of droning out his thoughts.

_Ding-dong-ding-dong… ding-dong-ding-dong…_

"Ritsukaaaaa!" the ever-annoying voice complained in its high, uncontrolled soprano. "I almost died in gym!" she cried, grabbing at Ritsuka's sleeved jacket. "A mile..!" she choked.

Ritsuka managed a giggle out of his chest. Had her annoyance became so tolerable that it was funny now? Really… what did Yayoi see in this girl?

Speaking of Yayoi… he should be coming about no—

"YUIKO!!" the second comedian made his way to the crime scene. "Aoyagi! What did you do to Yuiko! Why is she crying! No! Don't tell me! You used her innocent charm against her and seduced her into doing naughty things with you?! Before I… ever…."

The boy's face lost color for a moment before he recovered with a blood-shot expression. "How could you—"

Ritsuka held back a deformed laugh, walking away from the green-haired, glasses wearing boy who ridiculously enough, managed to somehow conjure up the genetics to be shorter than him.

"Don't you run away Aoyagi!" the shortie chased him down the hall, along with the flustered and embarrassed Yuiko.

"Yayoi-kun! Ritsuka and I… didn't do… anything…"

"Don't try to cover for him! I know he's to blame! I'm sorry you had to experience that…! You!" the shortie pointed his finger at Ritsuka's back, "Will pay!"

Another deformed chuckle burst through Ritsuka's throat and out of his mouth.

These two never failed to amuse him. As a package they were plain hilarious, but alone they were a pain in the ass.

"Oh yeah, Aoyagi…" the green-haired boy stopped his fanatics and obsession with the pink haired girl. "Hasn't it been a while since then?"

Ritsuka's light mood was sullied as yet another person reminded him.

He managed to shoot a death-glare at the boy before the bell rang again to go to the last class of the day.

"Geeze, first you rape precious Yuiko, and then you give me a stare with a murderous intent?! What did I do?!" he complained, tears jerking as he was forced to part ways with "his lovely" by the bell.

Ritsuka sighed and Yuiko hurriedly rushed to his sigh, as if apologizing for the shortie that had left them. Ritsuka ignored her, and slid the door open to the classroom.

_Ding-dong-ding-dong… ding-dong-ding-dong…_

_Finally! School's over!_ A sigh of relief escaped as the obsidian-haired boy scrambled to his feet, collected his things, and nearly sprinted out the door—not bothering to wait for the pink-head. He didn't know if he could live through any more of her badgering for today.

He frowned, considering that to be the truth. Until he visited his—mother—she would not shut up, and that was guaranteed. So, the sucked in a breath and continued for home.

--

As he opened the door, he was welcomed by a glomp on his cheek. He peeled the bug off his face with a grin. _Suck up…_

The small fiend smiled mischievously, he was after all a devil, no matter how cute he looked.

"Alright Kuru-chan!" he praised, setting his bag down and eyeing the sugar on the kitchen table. He reached into his coat pocket and threw a piece of hard candy at the devil.

The devil accepted in greedily and quickly vanished into a puff of smoke to enjoy his meal in peace.

Ritsuka made his way into the summoning room without hesitation, a small anxiety bubbling at his gut, "I summon thee from your residing to do my bidding, Soubi!"

With that, the room flashed and a small flume of smoke overflowed the circle, escaping for the floor. It no longer lingered in the air.

Ritsuka blinked to find he was staring at the tall blonde who had appeared before him.

The man had his legs crossed, floating in the air as if he had been sitting not too long a moment ago. He was holding a piece of paper he had been reading.

"Sorry to catch you when you were busy…" Ritsuka shied away to the kitchen, allowing the man to follow him once he finished whatever it was he had to.

_Soubi must be an important devil, huh? He's always doing paperwork of the sorts or something when I summon him…_ Ritsuka pulled a tray out of the oven which he had prepared in the morning. It had been on low-heat while he was in school so hopefully, it will still taste fresh—cinnamon buns.

The obsidian-haired boy didn't wait long until the tall devil entered the room, following the aroma of sweet cinnamon.

The man pulled out one of the kitchen chairs and sat down, lacing his fingers over the table.

Ritsuka could feel the blond's stare on his back and it made him shiver. He shook the feeling off quickly before placing the tray of pastries on the table.

Soubi had been catching on the past few days, thankfully. Ritsuka was glad that the devil started to realize that Ritsuka didn't feed him sweets just for a wish. Simply spending time together was enough to please the small boy.

They both took a small plate and served themselves the warm buns; Soubi was first to break the silence.

"Ritsuka… why are you always alone?"

Ritsuka looked up, his violet eyes deep pools that sucked the devil in. "What are you talking about? Your always here with me."

"I mean… where is your family?"

Soubi seemed to be cautious as he questioned. He didn't want to anger Ritsuka like he always did; the kid had such a short fuse.

The innocence left Ritsuka's eyes and he frowned, "Soubi, you know that already… my brother is missing, and my father is overseas."

The blond's eyebrows knit together, irritated by the answer.

"And your mother?" Soubi knew this was a difficult topic for the small child, but he needed an answer.

Ritsuka's ears flattened against his head and a small hiss escaped his mouth with a warning, "Soubi…"

"……"

"… She's not well." He admitted after the clock seemingly finished a short solo.

Soubi watched the boy, curious. "Not well?"

"She's… in the hospital…"

Soubi always had a hard time understanding sicknesses. At least, human sicknesses. Soubi had told Ritsuka before that there were no hospitals in Hell. Only private doctors. Though, Ritsuka didn't know how much to believe of it. Soubi had apparently been pampered his whole life: a rich noble. Maybe he wouldn't have known about hospitals? The rich do tend to be blasé about their surroundings…

Still, the tall man tried his best to keep up, "What kind of ailment?"

Ritsuka bit his lip, looking away, at the crumbs on his plate. "…ma…."

The blond moved in, "Sorry?"

"A coma…." Ritsuka looked back up at the same who seemed to have a confused expression on his face. "It's when… for some reason or another… a person doesn't wake up… basically."

Soubi was quiet then, thoughtful. "A coma…" he repeated, as if for recognition.

"Actually," Ritsuka interrupted, "I was contemplating on whether I was going to visit her or not." He stacked the plates on top of each other and went to place them in the sink. "Would you come with me… please? I think you might… understand humans better if you see a hospital at least."

Soubi nodded. Oddly enough, this brought Ritsuka ease. He had always hated visiting his mother.

--

The weather was changing and slowly, autumn was getting colder. November would be coming soon.

The breeze was calm today, yet the flowers held in Ritsuka's arm still rustled in it. He stood next to a tall, earless blond.

Soubi had promised to be good and stay close to Ritsuka. He would disguise himself as a human until they got back to the house. But until then, he was forced to wear his façade.

Ritsuka inhaled and stopped before a large white building. He exhaled, "Here it is… the hospital."

Soubi nodded, scanning the boring building over and easily caught up to Ritsuka's small steps when he suddenly started ahead.

The inside of the building was—dare he admit it—possibly more boring than the outside. Almost everything was white and everywhere it smelt like chemicals. The devil scrunched his nose in reaction. What a horrible place. This is where humans went when they were sick? If he had to guess, he would have said this was some sort of torture house.

Ritsuka tugged on the observing Soubi's arm and led him into an opening elevator. He clicked on a button and it lit up, fascinating the blond for a moment before something else fascinated him more—they were moving… up!

Hell was advanced in different ways. They didn't need mechanics like this because almost everyone… well, at least the competent people, could use magic.

The elevator made a _ding_ noise as they reached their destination and Ritsuka managed to pull Soubi out of the crowd's way, they were waiting to board it.

Ritsuka stopped in front of a room labeled, "Aoyagi Misako".

The boy took another inhale before opening the door and entering the silent room. The only sounds were that of the system attached to the still woman in the bed and that of cars in nearby traffic.

The woman laying on the bed looked worn—tired—despite her currently permanent sleep. She looked like she had been crying.

Ritsuka walked across the room and put the flowers in the empty vase next to his mother's bed and then took a seat. Soubi followed, sitting in a chair next to Ritsuka.

They stared at his mother for a silence which seemed like forever.

"…They said she was under too much stress."

Soubi looked down at Ritsuka with an empathetic expression.

"… She was a unique case. It's extremely rare… no… almost impossible for someone to go into a coma from stress overload… but…"

The boy didn't seem like he cared. It wasn't seeing his mother like this that hurt him… it was seein g his mother. Period.

"… After my brother disappeared, she slowly went into this state… before she went into a coma, she was basically like a droid. Work non-stop, she wouldn't socialize, and she wouldn't even take care of herself." He stared for a moment, "Maybe that's why dad left?"

Soubi pet Ritsuka's head, rubbing soothing circles beneath and behind his ears.

"And her temper…" the violet-eyed boy shuddered. This caused the blond to drop his hand in response. "It was like… she was losing her sanity… she would hit me… almost every day and told me, 'I can never replace him…'"

He let the thought linger before closing his explanation. "That is why… I would much rather live alone… than with her like that. That person… is not my mother."

Ritsuka looked up at Soubi, who seemed concerned, like he was starting to understand. "That's why I _have_ to bring him back. My brother."

The blond seemed to search the boy's eyes for any sign of doubt or indecision, but there was none. Ritsuka had chosen this path a long time ago. It was only Soubi who was hesitant, in hopes of hurting or leaving the boy behind.

"I'll start tonight."

Ritsuka cocked his head to the side, curious.

"The search for your brother… I'll start tonight."

Ritsuka looked even more confused. Happy, but, "I thought I needed to strengthen our bond?"

"You did. You told me about yourself." Soubi cupped the boy's chin in his hand before pulling away, "You let me _know_ you."

The wheels in Ritsuka's head clicked firmly then and he blushed. "Y-Yeah."

"Ritsuka… I promise… I will find Seimei."

--

"Soubi!" a whine came from the corridor connecting into one of Soubi's sitting rooms. Soubi was there, seemingly deep in thought.

He looked up to see his long time… servant-friend… leaning in the doorway.

"What is it, Kio?"

The man seemed just about as old as Soubi. He had messy, disoriented blond hair, a lighter shade than Soubi's and several piercings. He wore glasses and was a bit tan compared to Soubi as well. Although leaning, he seemed shorter and more feminine; almost like a housewife.

He sighed, "Geeze, you're so annoying to take care of."

"You wouldn't have to take care of so much if you didn't force all the others to quit. Remember? 'No, you're not doing this right! Or, who do you think you're talking to? Mind your manners?" Soubi lifted an eyebrow, watching as Kio's face slumped while recalled the said situations.

"Yeah, yeah… well, the big man's callin' for you."

"… Lucifer-sama?" Soubi looked worried and distressed saying the name. The kind of tone a babysitter would have while recalling the name of a wild child.

"Yeah, something about finding someone or something…"

_Already?_

"…Very well, thank you for informing me."

Kio scoffed and headed back in the direction which he had came.

_I would have never thought he was… in Hell._

--

Ritsuka lay in his bed, starring at the ceiling with a homogeneous emotion of anticipation and nervousness playing with his stomach.

Finally… he was going to find his brother, Seimei.

He continued to stare before something hit him. _How did Soubi know Seimei's name?_ He had never told him before.

Ritsuka shifted restlessly for a moment. The question gnawed at his brain.

Alas, the frustration tired him and he found himself falling asleep to yet again experience torture via Yuiko the next day.

* * *

**Thank you guys so much for all of the chapter updates! I appreciate it so much! You have no idea! And with school here and all I find barely any time to write. **

**So, I hope you guys continue to read and review!**


	5. Found

_**Loveless belongs to Yun Kouga**_

* * *

"Hey! Seimei! Where are we headed next?" a psychotic-toned voice mused, its origin licking blood from his fingers.

"…"

"Seimei?"

"Shut up, dog." The other voice came out icily, ending the conversation.

The two figures moved quickly across the scene of corpses. It was just another thing that hadn't mattered to them – death. The saddest part about it was that it wasn't even death, it was nonexistence. Death in hell can't be considered death. The sky in hell was nothing like that of Earth's. It was menacing, proving that escape from it was futile. Instead of pastels and the beautiful blues of La Terre, it was crimson, the clouds a wonderful black.

There was no sun in hell. There were only the seven moons which were also, although lighter and more luminescent shaded, red. Here in the Outskirts of hell, there was no life except for the vagabonds who were lost or exiled from the Capitol. Only in the Capitol, Apocolypse, was there life of any kind. That's where those bastard aristocrats lived along with Lucifer. Lucifer….

"This will soon… be mine."

------------

'_We will meet again… although I can't say under what circumstances; I look forward to that day._

_Stay well… Soubi._'

It was always at times like these that the anticipation was at its highest and at the same time, you were just as resistant to the cause of that anticipation. Soubi sighed, he had finally got a lead. However, that meant seeing _him_. The blond winced when he thought of the man. Soubi had tried his best to avoid him at all costs, rejecting invitations to his tea parties, spending time away from the castle, and all in all simply not going to any of the aristocrat get-togethers. And who exactly was this all-resented and unloved soul? None other than Lucifer.

Lucifer is the name human's gave him. Along with Satan, _The_ Devil, Hell's Creator and all those other titles. His real name is Minami Ritsu. Soubi shivered again. His past with Ritsu wasn't the nicest one. Let's say it's not exactly a stroll in the park to be favored by the ruler of Hell.

Soubi sighed again. While he was thinking, he must've made it far out of his house, for he found himself nearing the castle within a few minutes. He wasn't necessarily surprised though. All of the aristocrats lived close to the castle. Heck, the mansions were practically attached to each other they were so close.

The guards greeted him with a salute as he walked by them, along with some by-standing ladies who tried to use the rare chance of seeing Soubi to court him. He tried his best to ignore them, greeting them with only a smile until he reached the castle doors. Despite them being ten times his size, he opened doors almost effortlessly, soon making his way to the throne room.

The castle isn't actually what you thought it would be like…. Assuming you thought everything in Hell is gray and dreary. The architecture was beautiful inside; most of the floors were marble, the walls designed eloquently and tall. Large roman-style pillars seemed to rocket to the top, stabling the roof far above ground. Maids and butlers bustled inside, and it was quite active.

Soubi stood in front of the throne room doors. His efforts to avoid Lucifer were terminated once he asked the higher-ups for help with his investigation. Although Lucifer was the kind of person to act strict, stern and uncaring, he would be the one person to jump for the chance to have anything to do with Soubi. Yes, it could be called obsession.

Soubi inhaled and opened the doors to see the Nana no Tsuki – otherwise known as the council. They were the ones who controlled Hell. He looked around the room, at all the seven thrones surrounding it. They were raised high, so you were forced to look up. Forced to feel "inferior." He took notice that five of the seven weren't there. He focused on the highest and biggest throne in the middle – Lucifer's.

The man sitting in the throne looked completely composed. He had shoulder-length straight-cut hair and bangs that parted to the right of his face, partly covering his coinciding eye. He also wore large glasses that concealed his eyes to start with. He wore royal robes, no crown and no scepter; looked like any other ordinary aristocrat.

"So! Look who finally decided to show after how long?" a small voice shrilled bitterly to the right of the man he had been looking at. That voice belonged to none other than Sagan Nagisa – Ritsu's right hand woman… literally. Soubi shifted his gaze to her. She was petite in stature, had large wavy hair in pig tails, and small facial features; the most annoying to Soubi at the current moment being her magenta eyes that were fixated on him. She wore a Lolita-style outfit, if you didn't know any better (which most people probably didn't) one would think this 30-year-old woman was at most nineteen.

"I heard my creations beat you up?" she giggled almost smugly, "Looks like these are keepers."

Soubi was silent, he had nothing to comment about. That was what this poor woman did. She created artificial life – Hell's lead scientist. For as long as Soubi could remember he had been forced to fight her creations due to a stupid one-sided love she had for Lucifer.

The blond shifted his weight, being uncomfortable. Lucifer seemed to notice this and interrupted her monologue to get to the point.

"Nagisa, leave." He ordered.

"But! Ritsu—"she hesitated, flinging her head with a protestant expression, to look at him.

"Leave!"

Nagisa pouted and within a matter of seconds disappeared in a shroud of smoke.

"Now we are alone." Lucifer teleported from his place on the throne down to the ground, where he would converse less formally with his former pupil. "I made you into a fine devil, haven't I?" he sounded almost sarcastic.

"I didn't come here to talk." Soubi stated, hoping he would be able to leave soon. His body, although trained not to feel anything, still did. It tensed in the close presence of the man he despised, and nothing could be helped.

"I haven't seen you in so long though." Lucifer retorted, and within moments he was behind Soubi, a lock of the blonds' hair in Ritsu's hand.

Soubi shivered and pulled away. His eyes furrowed into a glare. "Tell me what you found."

Lucifer sighed, "Is that new summoner really important to you? I thought you promised yourself you would never –"

"That is my business." Soubi interrupted, "If you're not going to tell me, I'm leaving."

The blond turned to walk away, starting his way out of the echoed room.

"There have been mass murders outside the city… in the Outskirts. No devil could have done it himself. He would have needed to have a contract—"

"—with a summoner." Soubi finished the sentence, almost in a whisper.

"Exactly." Lucifer started again, now that he had gotten Soubi's attention, "Not just any summoner, an experienced one. And not just any devil… we think we might know which devil it is according to the list of them we had banished to the Outskirts."

"And?" Soubi pressed, irritated by how Lucifer had been stalling.

"And the only devil who has enough will power to mass murder others without thought is the convict of contracted team Beloved, Akame Nisei." Lucifer looked at Soubi, knowing what his reaction would be.

Soubi was shocked, he knew this man. He was a psychotic devil who had been corrupted and outlawed to the Outskirts for murdering countless devils without motive. He was also…

"Aoyagi Seimei's first contracted devil." Lucifer finished Soubi's thoughts audiably. "Which means Seimei is in Hell."

Soubi stood in silence for what seemed to be a long while, until Lucifer interrupted yet again.

"So, what is your contract's name, Soubi?"

Soubi looked up, his eyes dulled. "Not yet… I don't…" There was another moment of silence before Soubi turned on his heel, "I have to leave." He walked through the throne doors, closing them tightly behind him.

---------

Tiny arms stretched toward the sky above them. The sky was very blue today – the sun was out. This was a nice change because it had been very cloudy lately. Ritsuka smiled as he took everything in, he had to appreciate the weather while he still could for fall was going to end soon and the only season he hated more than autumn was winter. How he missed summer…

'_I can't wait to spend this summer with Soubi…_' Wait… Ritsuka stopped for a moment and then took another moment to groan. He failed to admit it before, out of fear. But ever since he met Soubi, he had been thinking more and more about him as their relationship grew. That man was contagious and taking over Ritsuka's mind.

The violet-eyed boy reached for the front doorknob of his house and walked inside, not watching where he was going. He mustn't have been looking because he ran into something tall and firm upon entering him home. It spelt of cigarette smoke and pastries. He opened his eyes wide in astonishment.

"Soubi?!"

Being so close to the blond seemed to be messing with him because he could swear he _liked_ being that close, and having the man's warmth melt through him. He reluctantly pushed himself away from Soubi to look at his face as if verifying it really was him. But an expression of almost worry adorned it, which would have caught him off guard. Soubi was usually very good at concealing his feelings, but he had been this way for a week. Ritsuka chose to ignore it… but he didn't know if he would be able to for much longer.

"How did you get here?" Ritsuka asked, taking his school bag off and heading toward the kitchen.

"I don't need to be summoned to travel to the human world. Summoning simply demands a presence at a certain time. That is how I can leave without you having to 'unsummon' me." he explained, following Ritsuka into the kitchen.

"Oh… makes sense."

Soubi pulled his chair out of the table and sat down while he listened to Ritsuka prepare something. Sounded like tea and some kind of crunchy pastry. A cookie perhaps?

Ritsuka shuffled in his thoughts. The main question was why Soubi had come of his own free will. He had always only come when Ritsuka had summoned him. And that worried expression… there had to be something up.

After a few minutes of preparation, Ritsuka served the food: crunchy chocolate chip cookies and oolong tea. He tended to be cooking simpler lately. He chose his seat, across from Soubi, who had just begun to pick at his food after saying his thanks.

There was a long and unnerving silence which bothered Ritsuka. He glanced across the table to see Soubi, who seemed to not notice anything unusual. When they ate together usually they at least talked about Ritsuka's day at school, or how fun Soubi had filling out paper work.

"Ritsuka…" Soubi broke the silence.

Ritsuka looked up at the man who looked desperate for something. This was it… he was finally going to say what had been on his mind—

"Another cookie, please." He held his plate out, his usual motion when asking for seconds.

The black-haired boy's jaw almost dropped. He grumbled to himself in frustration and disappointment.

"You have hands, get it yourself."

'_It's not like anyone else will be eating them anyway…_'

There was another prolonged silence and this is where Ritsuka's mouth finally burst.

"Soubi, what's wrong? You've been acting… weird this past week."

Soubi looked up at Ritsuka with a look of astonishment and regret on his face. Had he not known he looked worried for the past week? He looked hesitant, swallowed his bite of cookie, and started,

"I… found Seimei."

The violet-eyed boy sat there for a moment. He thought he would be more excited to hear Soubi say that. But under these circumstances and how Soubi was acting, he wasn't sure how to feel. On top of that… something had been bothering Ritsuka.

Ritsuka never told Soubi Seimei's name. Then, how did Soubi know it? He was sure there was nothing around the house that said his name. Ritsuka's mother had hidden all pictures of him right before going insane with the rational that if she 'never knew Seimei, him leaving wouldn't matter'.

"I never told you my brother's name was Seimei."

Ritsuka searched Soubi's face and found nothing, until he found Soubi's eyes. Something in his hazel eyes… they seemed resentful – they were hiding something.

"Sou—"

"Your brother is in Hell." Soubi changed the topic.

Ritsuka fumed. What was he hiding? Why wouldn't he tell him anything? On that note, he wasn't completely shocked that Seimei was in Hell. Like Ritsuka, Seimei had been a summoner. On that same note, Seimei had been a much, much stronger and more experienced summoner. He had to have had contracts with multiple demons.

"Are you willing to bring your brother back?"

"Yes."

"It will be dangerous… you'll have to fight and learn how to use your summoning abilities."

"I know."

"You'll have to _kill_ demons."

"I know."

"We will need to increase our contract's bond substantially."

"… I know. Soubi…" Soubi looked at the boy questioningly, "I have been waiting for this… I made my mind up a long time ago."

Soubi nodded, accepting his summoner's decision. Ritsuka was determined to find Seimei, at any cost.

"I will leave then…" Soubi stood, Ritsuka following soon after.

"We're leaving in three days. Once you enter Hell, you can't leave until you do what you came to do."

Ritsuka nodded. He would get all that he needed to done in that small time frame.

Soubi's tough exterior melted as if parting like this hurt him. He had been afraid to touch Ritsuka at all for the boy seemed to dislike it. And although he told Ritsuka how to increase their bond, it seemed like they weren't getting anywhere.

"Ritsuka."

The boy looked toward the sound of the voice, snapping out of his semi-trance and found his face meeting the stomach of the taller man. He was trapped in a surprising embrace, the feeling of today's earlier contact returning. This time, he allowed himself to submit to his body, and hugged the man back.

"I'll see you soon." The blond whispered into one of his ears, the warmth of his breath slightly burning his skin.

Ritsuka simply nodded and within moments found the man had vanished and that he was missing him already. He sighed and looked at the clock hanging on the nearby wall. There was no time to waste.

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**Sorry for the long wait!**

**You know, drivers education project + chemistry honors report + min. 10pg history essay + English III essay = no time. Lol **

**Not to mention the homework in between. None the less, thanks for waiting!**


	6. Bon Voyage

**I just realized, as I was forcing myself to write this chapter, that I have an incredibly boring writing style. ;-;**

**I'm sorry... but thank you for putting up with it and reading for the sake of the story! It's very, very, much appreciated!** w

_**Loveless belongs to Yun Kouga**_

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"Check, check, check...." small hands held a pen, marking off the boxes on a list of priorities. The hands belonged to none other than Ritsuka. The ebony-haired boy grinned as he held the long list in front of him. "Done!" It was relieving, and a long three days of annoyance and rushing had finally come to a close.

The boy's violet eyes hungrily scanned the room, searching for someone to show his accomplishment to. However, he stopped, realizing that it was stupid to even think for a second that that person could be here now. '_He promised he would come at five...._'

A frown graced the boy's lips as he read the digital clock sitting on his desk across the room from him. Only 1:13... He sighed and proceeded to spin in his desk chair, before jumping out of the chair all together and moving to the hallway.

'_There must be something I'm missing..._' Ritsuka pursed his lips, '_I told my school I was temporarily transferring... that's what Yuiko and Yayoi believe... oh, and Sensei, too. I've packed any clothes I would be needing... and... said good bye to Mom... and... ehh..._' As the child had been listing off things he could be forgetting, he soon came to a dead end. To tell the truth, he had no idea what to bring.

These past three days, time had been ticking by and Ritsuka had been spending it idly, sitting by and watching the hands race each other, knowing already who would be the winner. The boy had no idea what to expect in Hell.

Was Soubi going to provide shelter and food for him? How about clothes? The boy had no idea what to expect, really.

The boy settled to further waste his "precious" time watching the television. It was boring. Violet eyes stared at the screen, however, pictures weren't registering. He found himself completely taken away by the feeling of anxiousness that it was impossible to think of anything else.

He lay on the couch, staring at the ceiling now, only vaguely making out sounds that belonged to the pictures in the electronic box he had set out to watch.

The boy's eyes pulled at him. Wow, tired? He must have been so anxious the past three days that he didn't get enough sleep. Although reluctant, he allowed the sleep to come. Either way, he was going to be passing time by.

Something warm caressed the boy's cheek and forehead, moving the hair from his eyes. He didn't mind this warmth, it was so familiar, yet, so distant at the same time. However nostalgic, it brought a sense of longing that he couldn't deny.

His small hands reached for the source of the warmth and captured it, grabbing to it tightly and pulling it to himself. His tail twitched and he breathed contently, with the faintest triumphant smile painting his lips.

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Soubi had come to pick Ritsuka up at the agreed time, five o-clock. When he arrived at the house, it was surprisingly quiet and the air was still. An eye brow rose to this, however the devil was ever frivolous with his man-hunt. The boy couldn't be that hard to find, just follow the sweet scent that always lingered where he was.

And so, he did as instinct told him and followed the scent all the way to the living room. He looked at the creature as it slept soundly on the couch. The television was on, but it was muted. He looked back to the boy and noticed he was laying on the remote. He cracked a grin and walked over to the couch, kneeling down next to it.

He carefully weeded the remote control out from under the small body. He mentally slapped himself. He should be waking Ritsuka up, but the boy's sleeping face was much too cute to tarnish. If Soubi were to wake the boy, this perfect chance would be forever gone.

The man watched as Ritsuka tossed toward him, mumbling something incoherent as he did so.

"...Ritsuka..." the name was almost painful to say. Something so close, yet so unattainable.

The devil stared at the boy's face for what seemed like a long while, before perfecting the boy's almost paint-perfection face and moving those ebony bangs out of the canvas.

His gut burned with the desire to touch the sound creature even more, however he was caught off-guard and was attacked by the sleeping boy instead-- Those small hands grabbed hold of Soubi's and pulled the two closer together.

The devil didn't resist as he was pulled, however a guilty tinge made itself present in the back of the man's gut and he forced himself to wake the boy before the devil's desire got the better of him.

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"Ehh? Soubi?" the boy questioned, his voice only a little groggy from taking his nap. He rubbed at his eye and allowed his eyes to focus on the devil's hazel ones. "What time is it?"

The man smiled politely and stood, offering the boy a hand. "Time to leave. Are you ready?"

Ritsuka took the hand and blushed, a bit embarrassed by his own soon-to-be reply, "Well... I am... but, I didn't really know much about Hell, so, I... you know, kind of didn't pack anything?" He closed an eye, expecting impact, but nothing came.

The devil chuckled, "I'm sorry, I should have informed you earlier that I'd provide for you all living necessities." he smiled down at the boy, who seemed relieved, "Let's try again, are you ready?"

Ritsuka looked up at the devil and grinned, "Of course!"

Silence.

"So... uh... what do we do now?" he smiled wryly, awaiting further instructions from the taller individual.

"Now... you summon us to Hell." Soubi held his smile in place, walking with the boy to the summoning room while listening to him more or less freak out.

"W-w-w-wait! I only know how to summon here! But, summon TO Hell?!" he stressed, closing the door behind himself and the devil.

"Shhh... it's okay. Just follow your instincts." Soubi instructed, standing in the middle of the summoning circle he had first been summoned with. "Come."

Ritsuka frowned, unsure of what exactly it was Soubi wanted him to do, but alas, he followed the man into the circle, clasping hands with the tall devil. "Here goes nothing..." he breathed, closing his eyes. '_Incantation... Incantation... Um... umm..._' Ritsuka was no good with words, and wracking his brain for words good enough for an incantation was harder than he thought it would be.

"Rip open time and space, reverse summoning!" Ritsuka shouted, eyes squeezed shut. He was very faintly aware of anything that began to happen. He was assuming it was working, for Soubi's hold on Ritsuka's hand tightened and the room began to spin. The boy peaked open an eye to see that time and space had distorted itself and the two of them were moving quickly, much too quicky. Ritsuka hurriedly shut his eyes again, feeling sick to his stomach.

Crash.

The boy's eyes shot open as he felt his feet hit something solid. He released his breath, which he realized he had been holding the whole time and sucked in brand new air in which to sigh with.

His first reverse summoning... successful! He grinned widely and looked up at Soubi, who appeared completely unaffected by the whole happening. His heart sank a bit, just how experienced was Soubi? The boy knew Soubi was a strong devil, but exactly, HOW strong? What was the devil's past? Ritsuka bit his lip, he would not allow himself to become selfish and ask for more from the devil.

And then a second realization hit him, he was... in Hell! The boy's head shot around, watching as both beautiful and ugly creatures roamed the stone-pathed street. His head arched and the boy viewed in amazement, the crimson sky and it's seven moons. "Is it always that color?"

Soubi nodded in response, "Never a sunset or sunrise."

The area seemed like almost... home to the boy. Everything was so foreign, yet it felt so complete. Currently, it appeared that Soubi and Ritsuka made their "big entrance" in the middle of a bustling market place. Ritsuka decided to take this chance to explore the city more. '_This is familiar..._' Hell was indeed very similar to Europe during the 1700s. There were tiers, and the city rose high in the air. At the very bottom was the third class, or the peasants, in the middle were the second-class, everyday citizens, and from there on up seemed to be where the nobles lived. On the very top, was the castle. The boy's eyes lingered on the castle, a strange force seemed to be pulling him toward there.

Soubi interupted Ritsuka's trance by tugging on the boy's garments. "Let's get you into something... less foreign." the devil smiled, taking hold of the boy's hand and snapping his finger. Ritsuka blinked, and the two of them had teleported to the inside of a fancy and high-class building. "Wah! Soubi, how can you use magic?"

"While here in the Capitol, my magic is... for the most part, unlimited. However, once we step foot out of Apocalypse, my power becomes restricted." he explained, throwing a fancy cloak toward the feline-like boy. "This should be sufficient."

Ritsuka listened, '_So we're in Apocalypse right now..._' The cloak was a little large on the boy, but it wasn't that bad if the sleeves were rolled up a bit. '_This must be Soubi's mansion..._' the boy wandered off, discovering many new things in this enormous room. Ritsuka made his way to the window which was already open. He gazed at all the nobles, for the window had a great view of the Palace garden.

"Be careful near the win--"

"SOU-CHAN!! 3" a frivolous voice echoed in the halls and Ritsuka's heart skipped a beat, in complete terror.

The boy's and the devil's heads snapped to look at the opening to the room in unison, and almost as if on cue, a dirty-blonde came stomping into the room.

Ritsuka analyzed. It was definitely a man, however he was wearing the tackiest frilly apron. The man's eyes locked onto their prey and he pounced, tackling Soubi into a tight embrace. A pang of jealousy nagged at Ritsuka, but he ignored it. '_Soubi has a whole life over here..._' He looked down, but his moping was quickly interrupted by the seeming maid.

"EH?! SOU-CHAN!!" The maid pulled Soubi into a whisper, watching Ritsuka closely. If Ritsuka didn't know any better, he would have guessed that the look in the maid's eyes was absolute loathing.... That couldn't be, could it? He hadn't even met this person before!

Soubi broke from the maid's monologue abruptly, making Ritsuka twitch. "Kio, I'll discuss this with you later, go make dinner." The maid pouted, "Fine~!" He turned to leave, shot Ritsuka one last glance, and stormed off.

Ritsuka noted the name "Kio" and left the speculating for later. "I'm sorry about my maid. He wasn't expecting company." Soubi apologized. At this, however, Ritsuka became suspicious. Surely Soubi was also preparing the past three days? How could his maid not be expecting anyone?

"It's okay," Ritsuka lied, turning to look out the window again. There was a small silence before Soubi replied, hesitantly, "I'll let you get used to things a bit. I'll have one of my maids escort you down to dinner when it is ready." Ritsuka waved the devil off and allowed himself to slip into a trance-like state.

He was finally in Hell. He was finally going to see Seimei. This is what he had been waiting for. He frowned, he was here, so close, but why did it seem like he hadn't come very far at all?

He blinked. Someone was waving at him from the vast palace garden. He couldn't quite make out the figure. However, it seemed to be long-haired and intelligent. The boy looked around and pointed toward himself, and the minuscule figure seemed to be nodding. Then, it was waving as if telling the boy to "come". Ritsuka pended for a moment. The garden was enormous... and it was a maze.

Stupid rich people and their maze-like gardens. Would Ritsuka even be able to find the spot where the stranger was?

As if reading the boy's thoughts, the garden moved, and formed a straight path to the area where the stranger had been sitting. Ritsuka blinked again. He bit his lip.

What the heck! His intrigue had officially pulled him away from the window and into the wildnerness.

What could this stranger possibly want?

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	7. Stranger

Hey, guys! I still live! 8D

I'm really really sorry this took so long!

I kinda wrote it a few months ago... and, well... yeah. ._.

But! I started chapter eight already and I promise it'll be more exciting than this one! oTL ( and out within the month - yay summer vacation!)

Loveless belongs to Yun Kouga

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Ritsuka made his way to the garden-maze without anyone catching him. The bushes led straight to the center, where _that_ person was waiting. Ritsuka wasn't normally one to follow strangers, but he came to Hell knowing full well that he had nothing to lose and that his journey was going to be difficult.

He started walking down the straight path. The bushes in this maze were so incredibly intimidating that he forced a gulp down. They were at least three times his size, roses entwined in the branches, creating a beautiful and deadly sight.

He began running, quickly closing the distance between him and the stranger, who he could tell now, was a man who appeared to be in his thirties, however, he couldn't tell since the stranger's hair covered quite a bit of his face, glasses hiding his eyes. His hair wasn't as long as Soubi's, however it reached just past his chin. He had the oddest expression on his face, too. A mixture of curiosity and amusement.

The man was sitting on a bench in a gazebo, which had roses growing up it's poles like ivy or vines. Out of breath, he stopped before the white, wooden structure to look at the man. He didn't look like a devil... at least not beautiful like one. Then again, he could be mistaken. But... he could swear he seemed like a normal human. At least, that was his first impression.

He straightened his posture and walked inside. The man smiled and invited him to sit down using a hand gesture. Ritsuka sat near the exit, still cautious. "Who... are you?"

"Ritsuka!" his tone of voice seemed offended, "Aren't you supposed to introduce yourself before you ask others for their name?"

The boy stiffened. How did this man know his name?

"Don't worry. You're common knowledge throughout the nobility by now. You're the first one able to tame my Soubi, besides..." his voice trailed off and so did his eyes and then he came back, "Well, that's a different story." he chuckled half-heartedly.

Ritsuka's curiosity was piqued, but he let it go. Just who exactly was this man? And how did he know this much? "My" Soubi? He shifted uncomfortably where he sat. "Is that so..." he replied, almost as if to himself.

The man's demeanor changed, almost demanding Ritsuka's attention. The boy's head shot up in response to the aura. It almost felt as if he was commanded to do something without words. The man's voice spoke up again, beginning gently.

"You have to become stronger Ritsuka... I have brought you here to tell you this." he chose his words carefully, "You will not survive in this world unless you strengthen your bond with Soubi... he can't protect you the way you are now."

Ritsuka was stunned. That's it, this man had to be someone special. Did he know the reason why he was in Hell? '_I thought that was only between Soubi and I... traitor!_' He grumbled to himself, and the man interrupted his thought process.

"Soubi didn't tell me anything. Soubi... he... let's say we're not seeing eye to eye currently. However," he pressed, standing up and making his way toward Ritsuka and the entrance, "You will be tested here. That will tell you how strong your bond is... I do believe this will be your first battle with Soubi as well..." he patted the obsidian-haired child on the shoulder and made his leave. Disappearing as he turned the corner of the maze.

The boy looked down at his hands and squeezed his pants. '_I already know! I know! I know... Soubi and I... our contract isn't strong... but! I just... I'm scared..._' he gritted his teeth, angry at his own cowardice.

He inhaled deeply before looking up, staring at a a rose through the gazebo opening, '_I have to be careful though... what did he mean by a 'test'? My first battle?_' The boy's ears fell in discouragement and he stood up from the bench.

'_I better get back before they realize I'm gone..._' he stopped. '_Wait. Where did the path go?_' He was so busy thinking that he didn't even notice that the maze returned back to how it was originally. "Crap!" he swallowed his own words, biting his tongue.

He closed his mouth tight. "How do I get back?" He couldn't even tell which direction he came from because the maze walls were so tall.

He took a deep breath, "Uh... uh... this way!" he pointed in a random direction and started making his way through the paths that seemed to have no end.

- Several Hours Later -

The obsidian-haired boy had no idea what time it was. All he knew was that the crimson sky got darker, if that was considered possible, and that he was freezing and lonely.

He hugged his legs close to him as he sat on the ground, shivering from the cold. He had long lost where the gazebo was and he nearly cursed himself from coming out to see that stranger. It's not like he even learned anything new from him.

His violet eyes welled up with water from the mixture of anger he had for himself and fear of being lost. However, he held the tears back the best he could, refusing to give in so fast.

He knew that finding his brother was going to be hard. And yet... he couldn't help but be scared in this world, which was so new to him. '_Why am I so weak...?_' he stared at the ground, a single tear managed to break through his defenses and fall down his pale cheek. "Soubi..."

"RITSUKA!"

"...!" Ritsuka's ears perked up at the sound of his name. The sound pierced through him, like a lightning bolt hit him and his skin covered in goosebumps. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling... no. He slowly turned his head toward the voice.

He heard the footsteps coming closer and by the time he saw him, Soubi had already grabbed Ritsuka in a tight embrace, kneeling in front of the boy. He was tense, and relieved at the same time.

"S-Soubi, you! How-" Soubi hugged Ritsuka closer to his chest, muffling his question. "I was so worried..." Soubi whispered into Ritsuka's ear. His voice was forced. "Do you know how dangerous getting lost here is? You're completely defenseless!"

Ritsuka winced. '_Soubi..._' Without hesitation, he returned the man's hug with his own, burying his face into the devil's chest. "I was so scared... I was so scared!" He wasn't sure if Soubi could hear his muffled words, but he was safe now, and that's all that mattered.

He could hear Soubi sigh, although he wasn't sure if it was a sigh of relief or burden. The two remained like that, holding each other for a while – until Soubi noticed his master go limp from exhaustion. He nodded his head, with a faint smile tugging at his lips.

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Yes. Short chapter was short, still, hope you liked. it. ^^;;

Feedback is always appreciated~!

Cya guys again soon!


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